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Patrick Chitumba, [email protected]

GLOBAL telecoms giants, Clear Mobitel Ltd, a United Kingdom-based technology data company, seeks to invest US$200 million in Zimbabwe’s telecommunications sector in a move that aligns well with the Second Republic’s efforts to attract foreign investment.

The increased interest from several global players to invest in the country is a direct result of the “Zimbabwe is open for business” foreign policy thrust championed by President Mnangagwa as well as inroads made in engagement and re-engagement.

According to its website, Clear Mobitel specialises in cloud computing, IP bandwidth, Internet connectivity, 5G, data centre, the Internet of Things (IoT), mobile broadband, fixed wireless access (FWA), and autonomous vehicles.

The company also does telemedicine, artificial intelligence, big data, data analytics, 5G private networks, and eSIM, among others. 

The technology data company combines cutting-edge 5G core technology with data-driven artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms.

In an interview, on the sidelines of a tour of Pricabe Farm last Friday, Clear Mobitel chief executive officer, Mr Harpal Mann, said his company is angling for private-public partnerships to spread their wings across the Sadc region.

“I am happy that we have managed to engage in some fruitful discussions with the Government. I am impressed by the country’s business environment and prepared to invest US$200 million because of the open-for-business policy in Zimbabwe,” he said.

Mr Mann, who was in the country for the just-ended Industrialisation Week (SIW), said Zimbabwe has a conducive environment for investment.

“We want to start in Zimbabwe, which has a conducive business environment. Our objective is to eventually spread our wings to the rest of the region.” 

The envisaged massive investment by Clear Mobitel could potentially boost infrastructure, technology and services, which might have a broad impact on connectivity and the country’s economic growth.

In February, Clear Mobitel partnered with NEC Corporation, a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation and successfully deployed NEC’s state-of-the-art 5G Standalone (SA) Cloud Native Core Network solution in the UK to accelerate the delivery and adoption of advanced 5G services.

Addressing members of the United Arab Emirates business community in Dubai last year in December during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), President Mnangagwa reiterated that Zimbabwe was open for business and invited investors to consider the vast opportunities in the country.

He said Zimbabwe stood ready to welcome investors through the Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency (Zida), which offers seamless processes to register and do business.

The President also said there was an array of fiscal incentives that stood to benefit investors who chose to do business in Zimbabwe. 

Mr Mann was part of the delegation that visited Pricabe Farm in Kwekwe last Friday to see how the First Family is actively participating in farming.

The First Family is setting a commendable example in farming by cultivating 300 hectares of winter wheat and 200 hectares of barley, expecting an average yield of eight tonnes per hectare. The crops are now reaching the milky dough stage. 

The team also witnessed the Ankele breed of cattle, which the President acquired from Rwanda.

As part of the seventh edition of the Sadc Industrilisation Week (SIW) in Harare, member states toured various entities in the country, which included the Dinson Iron and Steel Company (Disco) US$1,5 billion steel plant in Manhize, Dendairy plant in Kwekwe and the Precabe Farm, among others.

The tours were part of the SIW’s objective to promote the Sadc Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap (2025-2063) and to identify industrialisation projects that can be jointly implemented by the public and private sectors within the  region.

Zanu-PF Politburo member, Cde Patrick Chinamasa, who was also part of the delegation on tour, said the country is reeling under the illegal sanctions imposed on Harare following the successful implementation of the land reform programme.

“Zimbabwe was imposed with illegal sanctions, but we are soldiering on under the leadership of President Mnangagwa who is leading in the sanctions-busting measures adopted by the Second Republic,” he said.

“We have been reeling under sanctions ever since we embarked on our successful land reform programme. You wouldn’t have seen this before we empowered our people. 

As such, the President has made it very clear that we need to find ways to deal with the sanctions and get the country going.”